The invention relates to a shiftable elastic support bearing for vibration dampers for use in vehicles of different track widths.
From U.S. Pat. No. 4,213,631, a McPherson strut is known, which is held between a wheel suspension member and a bearing receiving device on the body side. By means of the spring strut, which can be adjusted in the bearing receiving device by means of connecting elements, the position of the wheel, such as the camber and the caster, can be changed.
It is an object of the invention to provide a support bearing for a vibration damper, which is arranged in a sloped position, can be used for vehicles with different wheel track widths, and can be installed in the vehicles in a simple manner, without the necessity of subsequently changing the geometrical data, such as the inclination, the camber, the toe-in, the spring travel, as well as the kinematic data, such as the bump camber change, the bump toe-in, the caster change.
According to the invention, this object is achieved by providing an arrangement wherein
(a) the vibration damper, can be fixed in two spaced positions (A, B) in bearing receiving devices of the body of a vehicle by means of the bearing flange;
(b) the bearing flange with the damper is arranged in the bearing receiving device, so that it can be rotated by an angle of approximately 180.degree. around its center line; and
(c) the damper is arranged at the same height with respect to the bearing receiving device in both positions (A, B), by means of a ball bearing which can be shifted in height in the receiving element.
Principal advantages achieved by means of the invention result from using a shiftable unit consisting of the support bearing and the vibration damper for two wheel track widths of vehicles. This shifting takes place by simply rotating the support bearing by 180.degree. in an opening of the bearing receiving device on the body side, such as a spring strut dome. The characteristics of the bearing may differ.
Since the bearing receiving device extends obliquely sloped toward the outside at the level of the vehicle, during the shifting, a shifting of the height takes place at the same time in the receiving device of the vibration damper, which results in an undesirable reduction of the damper travel and in changed wheel alignment values.
In order to avoid these disadvantages and, for example, in the case of a broad wheel track width, create the same conditions at the wheel damper or at the vibration damper, as in the case of a smaller wheel track width, a height compensation element is arranged in the support bearing. This height compensation element comprises a spacer which can be inserted into the interior receiving element of the bearing in a manner which is simple as far as the mounting process is concerned. This results in the same position of the vibration damper, in each case, for both wheel tracks widths, with respect to the bearing receiving device on the body side, and thus no reduction occurs of the damper travel. In addition, by means of this measure of compensating the height, an unchanged position of the wheel adjusting values is maintained, such as the camber, the toe-in, the toe-out, the inclination, the caster, and additional adjustments or readjustments may be largely avoided.